Apparatus for use in the fire control of guns mounted on unstable platforms



. J. P. WATSON Nov. .19, 193s. I

APPARATUS FOR- USE mmnm FIRE dom'noL .GUNS MOUNTED 0N UNSTABLEPLQTFORMS H Filed uay 2 ,'19s3 ,2 sheet -snag; 1

Nov 1a.; 1935.

A -.-|.,P. WATSON 2,021,708 APPARATUS FORUSE- IN THE FIRE CON'ILROL 0F 1 GUNS MOUNTED- ON UNSTABLE PLATFORMS 1' Filed May '2. 1933? Patented Nov. 19, U

, 2,021,108 c APPARATUS Foltgvsa. INI HRFIRE con- TROL F GUNSiMOUNTED ONUNSTABLE' I BMs: p John Percival}Watson, westminsten 'llondong. w .England, vassignor to vickers Armstrongs Lim- I ited, Westminster, England, a British company "Application May 2; 1933, Serial Na."e6s',954 f I -In Great'Britaln May 4-, l 93z w [3 Claims. (cite-I41) V -"--This invention relates to apparatus for use in the fire control of guns-mounted 'on' a shipor other unstable platform where the' errors dn training or in training and elevation du e to" the rolling or rocking and othermovements of-"such 'platformhave to'be corrected. It "has been proposed, for'use with anti aircraftguns,'to provide a have, added tothem various corrections hereinafter'refer redto iri' order to"dete rmine the correct angles of gun elevationahd gun means for correcting the'angle of elevation-or "site of 'the'targetderived' from a controlling or director sight (which angle includes the diserror due. to the rolling or rocking of the platform and for comparing the corrected or stabilized elevation (or a func'tionthereof) with 15 the elevation angle (or a function thereofi'producedby the calculator (whichlatter angle is independent of the roll) so as, to enableth'e setting of' thelatterto be kept properly adjusted. Similarly to provide means -for' correcting *the' angle of trainingderived' fr'o'm the controlling sight for the lateral error due to the rolling or rocking of theplatform and m comparing the corrected or stabilized"training angle (ora function thereof) with the training angle (or a function thereof) produced'by the calculator so as to-enable the latter to' be kept-properly aajusted. The uncorrected or unstabilizedf angles obtained from the-controllingsight' may be associatedmechanically with' the rolling or rocking corrections determinedin any suitable manner and the resultant anglea'which are thecorrected or' "stabili zed angles'of elevation 'and trainingmay be indicated by' meansj'of pointers moving coaxially with other pointers which are driven from the calculatorfin"accordance'with the angles of elevation and training produced plot to fall on the mean or smoothed path of the first-mentioned plot and in this manner inequalities in the transmission of the corrected or stabilized angles are smoothed out. Also are provided means for incorporating corrections due to the diflerent' angular positions -both in 'elevatibn t'urbance" due to the roll angle) for the vertical culator is'then adjusted so as to cause the second i sight elevation cross leve1' ,-s vt jm this base and in training occupied at any mom ntby the ,controllingsight and thegunfor guns due to ver 'tical andlateral deflections'applied to thelatter. -:Furthermore' are provided means whereby the uncorrected or "unstabilized angles of elevation andtrainin'gobtained from th Controlling Sight t ii t 1o transmitted to'thegun orgu'ns;

p It has alsobee'n proposed'to'provide means-forderivinggfrom the calculator a? movement in -aca, cordance; with the roll inthe normal fvertical plane of- "the sight (herein termed the sight roll) I and for elevating or depressing the controlling sight in accordance Withthe said de-.

"rived-sight'roll so that the-sight elevating numf I ber-is relieved o! the work heretoforeynecessary I 'iribompansating .for the sight roll; OnemaY 20 also add to the-movement in accordance with the sight'roll a'movement in accordance with the" elevation angle (or ailinction thereof) derived from the'calculator, and also the correction for r the only work; requiredfto be done y the sight elevating number is to vary the elevation when the'rate of elevation of the target alters as shown bythe target'moving away-1mm the sight line," the sight remaining on'the target so long as this rate does not vary.

' "One can also provide means for-deriving from the calculator the required-"training correctiondue-to theroll measured in}; vertical plane at r right angles tothe normal vertical plane of the 35 'si'ghtgthis rollbeing -known asfthe"sight trun- 1 nion ro and'the saidcorrection being known as {the "sight training cross level", and for training the controlling sight inr accordance with the said- I derived "sight training crosslevelv. the 40 V sight-training: number is'also relieved of the work heretoiore necessary in correcting the training for themovementof thesight dueto "sight trunv '7 nion rolrft Qne may also add-to the-movement in' vaccordance with the sight trunnioncross level",

a movement, in accordance "with I the training I angle, (or aiunction thereof) derived ,fromthe.

calculator, so ,that in this casethe only work. rea quired to be done lby thej'sight" training number is" to vary the trainingt when the rate 01 training" or bearing 'oifthe target'vvaries shown, by the target moving. away fromthe s'ightline the sight "remaining on the target so long'as this rate does 1 not vary. Furthermore the vertical and lateral deflection setting handles normally Pr vided on 56 ling sight-station, the movement of these latter,

1 handles being transmitted singe suitable manner to the corresponding shafts of *theealcula- I tor. In this manner the necessity for theipai rs 'of elevation and training'pointers (or the plotting devicesl' mentioned in my U. S. Patent No.

1,891,397 and in concurrent U-. S; application -Serial "No. 577,846 andthe .specificationsxof kmy English Patents, Nos. 374,058 and 374,059,} is

' avoided as the point of reference now becomes? 7 o calculator V8, ,.Due1,.to'this control, the pick-up the actual target.

The chief object of the presentinvention is simplify anti-aircraft flre'controrapparatus of the above type and adapt it for use with surface,

or low-angle-of-flre, guns-suchas ordinary naval guns or torpedo defense guns, etc; 1

According to the present invention the. apes: ratuscomprises a gyroscopically stabilized mem her by which a device is operated in accordance with "gun trunnion r0113, this device being used for deriving the fgun training cross level :and

the gun elevation cross-level? corrections which ment proportional to gun training cross. level. Thismovement is then applied through 'intermediate shafting to one element of a differential. IS a' second element of which receives movement from-.the..,0alculator 8 proportional to gun training. The movement of the-result member of the differential is applied toa'transmitter ll controlling thetransmission of training to the guns.

her 2 is controlled by a pinion I which receives *1 movement equivalent to sight training from the .';.'I'he carriage 16 supporting the pick-up mem- "im'ember 2 is maintained in a vertical plane parallelrto..a'plar' e containing the axis of the director sight. Undenthe separate or combined movements of rolling and rocking of the ship, 1 the pick-up member 2 is unstable relative to the line of sight. This'movement is applied to a relay l8 controlling a power motor l9 situate at the gdirector sight A.; The movement-10f the power 7 areincorporated in the movements given tog-the gun treiningandgunelev'ation indicators or transmitters. In addition the said. member may,

.it des ired, operate two furtheridevigies, one in ac- Vcordance ,with "sight roll an d theothenin accordance with gun roll". I The ;sight rollidevlce' serves to impartthe required elevationalcorrection to the controlling or directorfigsight and the -gun roll device serves toimpart the required elevational correction tothegun elevation indicator-or transmitter. No provision is made for sighttraining cross levelfi correction-as thisis ;not necessary owing to thelow angles of: sight ,elevation as compared withrthe an in anti-aircraft; gun fire control.

gles obtaining With these considerations .in vvievmfthe invenmotor is appliedttoone eIementLof a. differential 2B alsecond element of; which is controlled bytthe 25 elevating hand-wheel 2 l. and; the movement of the result element of: this difierential isaapplied i .to the elevating ar-on thesight. ,The sight is therefore stabilized. against .alongthe line of sights; a

all effects :of rolling Ihepick-up memberjmounte'd at rightangles to the pick-up ;mem ber l on' the carriage '5 l and i 1 controlled in training by, the pinion-9,1is lmaintained in a vertical plane. parallel toaplane containing the, axis of the barrel. It receives 85 movement .due; to its instability j relative to the stable disc 1,4,;which, movement .is proportional to ,roll alongthe line of thegun... This movement tion resides in the concepts, and instrumentalities i ,mentaof this differential is, controlled bya quadfor embodyingsame described hereinbelow,;def rant, 25 which receives movement from the aforefined in the subjoined claims, and illustrated in the accompany n drawing. v o 1 In'the drawing: 4

Fig. 1 is a diagram of one embodiment, and Fig. 2,is-a diagram of amodiilcation. a r 1, i

l, 2: and 3 are three pick-up membersassociated with the aforesaid gyroscopically stabilized memb er which is in the form ofga horizontal metal-disc]. The. pickeup members i and Sara M mounted at right angles to eachother and are.

supported'by a carriage I which can be trained around the stabilized disc 4. The pick-up memher 21s supported on a separate carriage G which ..can=also betrained around the disc; The can riage 5 supporting thepick-up members i. and 8 1 is controlled by the pinion 9,,which mayreceive movement from the calculator 8 proportional to parallel to awgplane. containing the axis of, the

gun trunnions. Under the separate; or combined consequent instability of. the pick-upmiember I relative tothe stabilized disc 4, thepick-up membar will receive, dueto itsm'aintaine d contact lator 8. The camoid I2 is designed to operate a'resiilt member l5 which will receivemove- Q-is'applied via a relay, "and power motor to one :element of .a differential; 2| a second ele- 40 said camoid l3. camoid is rotated forgun elevatiOn and traversed for-gun trunnionroll i andimparts ,movement to the quadrant 25 pro- {5. portional to fgun, elevation cross levelhw-The result member or the last mentioned differentialtherefore receives a movement. which is proportional-to gun rollii-gun elevation cross-leve and thistotaliis, applied to the diflferential as. so Atthis; diiferentialp an amount proportional to elevation isadded and the total is applied to the; gun elevationtransmitter 21.

f member 3 by an amount 1 equal to I the lateral tr aining) a gun training. Bythis means thepick-up member I a l is maintained at alLtimesin a vertical plane member 2, measuring roll along line, .ofysight.

defiectionf correction- (i. tei 'sight trainingigunl V In cases where lateral:deflection issmall, it may .be'found; convenient to dispense with thepick-up 0o 1 For such a case movement proportional tofroll L effects of: rolling and 'rockingofthe ship,.and the indicatedifor .the pick-up member Ito approxialong the; line of. gun obtained fromthe pick-upf memberj'mightbe applieddn' the same'way as 65 mately stabilize'the sight against the effect of 'roll along the line i of. sight. An arrangement for carrying out this idea is shown in Fig. 2, in which the former pickup-member 2.0f Fig-1 is eliminated together :with its concomitant appurte- "f0 nances; and the, relays-.l8fand 22 are both operated by pick-up 3. B'y, these means, the member a L 3;is used to add V correctionsto the director sight, aspostulated. i a i v Q .,No details ay given of', the calculator 8- pro- Fromthe foregoing. it .willgbe; seen that the pickrup memberv 2 is displaced from the. pick-up 55 {2,021,708 plane; means for deriving gun-trainingcrossleveI ducing lateral deflection, gun elevationand training, as this may take any of the usual forms employed forthis purpose. 7

The aforesaid pick-up members maybe constructed as described with reference to Figure;

of the drawing relating to English PatentNp.

The'expressions sight roll, gun roll, gun

trunnion roll, gun elevation cross level; gun training cross leveland "sight training cross level are defined in the specification of my aforesaid English Patent No. 374,058. I

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States isr-- 1. Apparatus for use in the fire control of lowangle-firing guns having trunnions and axes and mounted on an unstable platform, comprising a gyroscopically-stabilized member having a stable horizontal-plane; two pick-up'members movable with the unstable platform and moved bysaid plane relatively to the platform in substantially vertical planes, respectively. 'parallelto the gun trunnions and to the axis of the gun, so that each I is moved according to the component of movement of the platform in its respective vertical plane parallel to the'gun" trunnions; and'means accordance with roll along the line of the gun.

idirector-sight and having a third'pickupvmern plane so as to be moved by said plane in a sub- 7 where lateral deflection is small and including 'elevational corrections to the gunelevation trans-a j 7' mitter;

and gun-elevation cross level corrections tram? that pick-up memberwhich is movableQ-in a! for transmitting movement from the other pickg up member to. the; gun elevation indicator in 2.-Apparatus as in claim 1, and including a 7 her movable with the platform and engaging-said 10 stantially vertical plane parallel to the axis of a V a the director sight, and means for transmitting T l 7 movement from this pick-up member to the" director-sight. g 15 3. Apparatus as in claim 1, adaptedfor use I means for utilizing the movement of that pickup which operates in a plane parallel to the axis of the gun bothfor imparting correctional movements to the director-sight and for imparting JOHN PERCYIVAL WATSON. 5 

